Summerfest began a new stage in its history Wednesday night with the launch of the BMO Harris Pavilion. To help kick things off at the new stage, the Big Gig turned to a man who has seen and made his share of Summerfest history: Milwaukee native Steve Miller.

Early in his set, Miller recalled his first Summerfest gig in the early '70s, when the crowd stood on asphalt with a few scattered beer stands surrounded by chain-link fencing, and the stage was barricaded by greasy barrels to keep the inordinately frolicsome from joining him on stage.

At 68, Miller is holding firm of form. He's put out two new albums in the last couple years and toured Europe for the first time in decades. Wednesday's set mixed Miller evergreens such as "Take the Money and Run" and "Abracadabra" with blues standards from the new discs, such as "Further on Up the Road."

- Dave Tianen,Special to the Journal Sentinel

Lupe Fiasco

An animated crowd packed the Harley-Davidson Roadhouse on Wednesday and spilled beyond its limits to hear Lupe Fiasco, one of hip-hop's most cerebral, talented wordsmiths. The only problem: his mic was barely audible.

The Grammy-winning, socially conscious Chicago native, flanked by a full band, matched his audience's energy, tearing off his black hoodie and bobbing from each side of the stage on the high-octane opener, "Words I Never Said."

Fiasco's intensity never waned and the audience remained appreciatively engaged, but fans grew restless with the subpar sound and broke into a chant of "Turn the mic up!" four songs in.

Fiasco responded by grabbing a different mic and, newly amplified, ripped through a string of fan favorites, including "Go Go Gadget Flow," "Touch the Sky" and "Kick, Push."

- Alex Morrell,Special to the Journal Sentinel

Phantom, Rocker & Slick

Aside from a secret show Monday at Potawatomi Bingo Casino, the last time Phantom, Rocker & Slick played together in public was in 1987. At its official reunion show Wednesday at the Potawatomi Bingo Casino Stage & Pavilion in front of a small but enamored crowd, the roots 'n' rockabilly trio's music proved to have aged surprisingly well.

The musical skills of Stray Cats drummer "Slim" Jim Phantom, fellow Cat Lee Rocker on double bass and vocals and David Bowie's former guitarist, Earl Slick, haven't aged at all. Rocker smacked the bass strings on a cool cover of "Stray Cat Strut" and aped Elvis' croon on "What You Want," while a stage-stalking Slick, sporting the punk look he fashioned in the '80s, proved with effortless, electric riffing why he was worthy of jamming with the Thin White Duke.

- Piet Levy,Special to the Journal Sentinel

Walk the Moon

Walk the Moon hit the U.S. Cellular Connection Stage on Wednesday night brandishing splotches of brightly colored war paint like a tribe of psychedelic soldiers. Yet it was clear from the Cincinnati band's peppy pop that these guys were lovers, not fighters. From show opener "The Liftaway," which playfully juxtaposed four-part vocal harmonies and space-bound keyboards with punkish percussion, the band was all smiles. It sprinted through smitten, winking dance jams like "Quesadilla" and "Jenny" from its new self-titled album and frequently inspired crowd clap-alongs - most passionately on "Tightrope." Singer Nicholas Petricca flung his arms in the air, and bass player Kevin Ray smacked Sean Waugaman's drum kit with a stick.

Out of this world this wasn't, but Walk the Moon's set was fun - and in the case of a space-pop rendition of Fleet Foxes' earthy folk opus "White Winter Hymnal," genuinely inspired.

- Piet Levy

Kim Lenz & the Jaguars

A scheduling mix-up delayed Kim Lenz's start Wednesday night at the Potawatomi Bingo Casino Stage, but it opened up some time for a 30-minute set by her three-piece backing group, the Jaguars. They riffed on a mix of Texas shuffles and old-time folk, including "Sitting on Top of the World" and "Greenback Dollar."

When Lenz arrived onstage, she was rarin' to boogie. Decked out in a black dress, a red scarf and a cowboy hat over her bright red hair, the California native bopped around the stage to "Saturday Jump" and slyly growled along with the rockabilly melody of "That's the Breaks" - a song she wrote with Robert "Big Sandy" Williams. She was playful with the crowd and mused about beer-flavored cheese after singing the Miller Sisters' "Ten Cats Down."